Locomotive roundhouse-jack



G. F. DEVINE.

'LOCOMOTIVE ROUNDHOUSE JACK. APPLICATION ElLEDJUNE23f1919.

1,337,347, Patented A r. 20, 1920.,

2 I nue nfo 1":

GEORGE F. DEVINE, OF PGRTL AND, MAINE.

LOCOMOTIVE ROUNDHOUSE-J'ACK.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Apr. 20, 1920.

Application filed June 23, 1919. Serial No. 308,114.

at its lower end with a hood which issupposed to collect the smoke rising from the locomotive stack.

In these devices it is necessary to'stop the locomotive so that its stack will be exactly beneath the jack and this operation requires both care and time.-

It frequently happens that brasses have to be inserted in a locomotive or a pin has to,

be inserted in the driving wheel or some other like repair has to be made on the locomotive when the latter is in the round house. In such cases it is necessary to move the locomotive on the track to get the parts into the right position. It is important, therefore, that the locomotive should maintain its connection with the'jack while still being able to move back and forth more or less in order to avoid filling the round house with smoke. If the jack is always connected with the engine, the latter can be fired up at any time without filling the round house with smoke whereas, under the old conditions, it could not be fired until the repairs were finilihed and the engine placed under the ae The object of my invention is to provide a locomotive jack, which will permit the locomotive to be driven into the round house and stopped at any convenient position, and to automatically make connection with the ventilating jack without special attention on the part of the driver.

In the preferred form of my device, the lower end of the ventilating stack is connected with a hood having ahorizontal extension. Depending from this hood is a shaft which has a horizontal movement with relation to the hood.

At the lower end of the shaft is a spring trapdoor which admits the locomotive stack to the shaft as the locomotive moves along its track.

The resistance of the springs to the entrance of the locomotive stack is suificiently great to cause the shaft to slide along to the limit of its motion before the locomotive can pass through into the shaft.

After the locomotive shaft is once inside the jack, it can be run forward or back to quite an extent while still maintaining its connection with the ventilating ack.

I have illustrated my invention by means of the accompanying drawing in which:

Figure "1 is 'a side elevation,

Fig. 2 is a cross section on the line 1-1 of F ig. 1 and Fig. 3 is a section 011 the line 22 of Fig. 1.

Referring to the drawing, 3 represents the roof of the round house, 4 the ventilating stack and 5 a hood attached to its lower end.

This hood 5 is preferably made conical in side elevation and is substantially the same width as the ventilating stack.

Connected with the lower portion of the hood is a shaft for receiving the smoke from the locomotive stack, the shaft being so connected with the hoodthat it has a horizontal motion with relation thereto so that the shaft moves horizontally to a limited extent as the locomotive moves forward and back while retaining its connection with'the locomotive stack. f

In order to accomplish this connection, the lower end of the hood 5 is elongated into an extension G-this extension projecting parallel with the track and extending both forward and back from the hood proper.

The hood 5 and extension 6 are entirely inclosed at their top and sides excepting where a connection is made with the stack 4.

The closed ends 7 of the extension 6 constitute stops for limiting the motion of the shaft as hereafter explained.

The shaft, which connects with the locomotive stack, is formed of the vertical stack 8 having at its upper end an elongated duct to form an extension 9 which fits within the hood extension 6. The extension 9 is somewhat shorter than the extension 6 so that the shaft may have a considerable movement back and forth while still connected with the hood. The extension 9 is entirely closed on the upper sides and ends except where it connects with the upper end of the shaft and where it has a ventilating opening 10 formed in its upper portion.

The shaft and its extension are Supported on the hood so as to have a horizontal motion thereon by means of wheels or trucks mounted on the shaft extensions traveling on tracks formed on the hook extension.

As here shown, trucks 11 are j ournaled on brackets 12 which extend upward at the sides of the extension 9, the brackets being formed on the ends of supporting straps 13 which extend across and support the shaft and its extension. A truck or runway 14; is secured at the outside of the hood. extension 6 at each side and on these tracks the trucks 11 run and guide the horizontal movement of the shaft.

On the lower end of the shaft 8, I provide a spring closing trap by which the locomotive stack of any height within certain limits can enter the shaft horizontally.

As here shown, this trap is made in the form of a pair of folding doors acted upon by springs which normally tend to close them when swung in either direction.

A pair of doors 15 and 16 are hinged to the forward side of the shaft at the bottom and a similar pair of doors 17 and 18 are hinged to the rear side of the shaft. These doors are in practice about 24 inches high and represent approximately the variation in height of stacks of different locomotives.

Each of the doors is provided. with helical springs 19 so adjusted that they will resist the tendency to swing open. the doors in either direction. The springs are also stiff enough to cause the locomotive stack to move the whole structure of the shaft and its connecting parts before it will force its way through the trap doors.

The ends 7 of the extension 6, by checking the movement of the shaft, allow the stack 20 of the locomotive to force its way into or out of the lower end of the shaft.

The practical operation of the device is as follows:

The device is left generally with the forward end of the shaft extension against the partition 7. When the locomotive enters the round house the locomotive stack strikes against the folding doors. The resistance of the door springs is such that as the 1000- motive advances, the stack pushes the shaft and its extension 9 along until it comes against the closed end of extension 6 when the locomotive stack forces its way into the shaft. The stop can be made at any convenient point on the track and the locomotive may be shifted back and forth to a limited extent while keeping the connection with the ventilating stack intact.

T he ventilating stack, being substantially tight in all its parts, the smoke is readily carried off and the round house is kept free from smoke.

When the locomotive is backed from the round house, the impact of the stack on the inside of the doors 1517 draws back the shaft until strikes the stop 7 when the stack frees itself from the shaft and the device is left ready for the next locomotive.

In practice in ordinary cases the engine should have a motion of 8 to 10 feet back and forth in order to effectually make such repairs are necessary without leaving the jack. If a greater distance is required the parts can be proportioned to permit this motion.

The device may be made of galvanized iron, asbestos board, fire-proofed wood or any suitable material.

I claim:

1. In a locomotive jack, the combination of a ventilating stack, a hood connected therewith, a hollow ventilating shaft depending from said hood and a pair of spring closed folding doors in the side of said shaft at its lower end adapted to allow the locomotive stack to enter said shaft horizontally.

2. In a locomotive jack, the combination of a ventilating stack, a hood connected with the lower end of said stack, a ventilating shaft depending from said hood and horizontally movable with relation thereto and a trap door in the lower end of said shaft for admitting the locomotive stackhorizontally into the lower end of said stack.

8. In a locomotive jack, the combination of a ventilating stack, a hood connected with the lower end of said stack, a track on said hood, a shaft depending from said hood, trucks on the upper end of said shaft traveling on said track and a trap door on the lower end of said shaft for admitting the locomotive stack horizontally into the stack.

4C. In a locomotive jack, the combination of a ventilating stack, a hood connected with the lower end'of said stack, said hood having a horizontal extension, a track on said hood, a shaft depending from said hood and having a horizontal extension at its upper end located within the extension of said hood, trucks on the upper end of said shaft traveling on said track and a trap door in the lower end of said shaft to admit the locomotive stack.

5. In a locomotive jack, the combination of a ventilating stack having at its lower end a hood, a horizontal extension for said hood, a trolley track on said extension, a

shaft depending from said hood having an inclosed horizontal extension on its upper end with a ventilating opening in its top, said shaft extension being located and horizontally movable within said hood extension, trolley wheels on said shaft extension traveling on said track and a trap door in the lower end of said shaft for admitting the locomotive stack.

6. In a locomotive jack, the combination of a ventilating stack having at its lower end a hood, a horizontal extension for said hood, a trolley track on said extension, a shaft depending from said hood having an inclosed horizontal extension on its upper end with a ventilating opening at its top, said shaft extension being located and horizontally movable within said hood extension, trolley wheels on said shaft extension traveling on said track, stops for limiting the motion of said shaft extension and a trap door in the lower end of said shaft for admitting the locomotive stack.

7. In a locomotive jack, the combination of a ventilating stack having at its lower end a hood, a horizontal extension for said hood, a trolley track on said extension, a shaft depending from said hood having an inclosed horizontal extension on its upper end with a ventilating opening in its top, said shaft extension being located and horizontally movable with said hood extension, trolley wheels on said shaft extension traveling on said track and a spring closing trap door for admitting the locomotive stack, said door having springs rigid enough to cause the horizontal movement of the shaft by the impact of the locomotive stack.

8. In a locomotive jack, the combination of a ventilating stack having at its lower end a hood, a horizontal extension for said hood, a trolley track on said extension, a shaft depending from said hood having an inclosed horizontal extension on its upper end with a ventilating opening in its top, said shaft extension being located and horizontally movable within said hood extension, trolley wheels on said shaft extension traveling on said track and a spring closing trap door on the front and rear walls of the shaft to allow the locomotive stack to pass into and out of said shaft in both directions.

In testimony whereof I affix my signature.

GEORGE F. DEVINE. 

